4. Day Two

Today's ports of call:

Departed Bergen 22.30, arrive Floro 04.30

Depart Floro 04.45, arrive Maloy 07.15

Depart Maloy 07.30, arrive Torvik 10.30

Depart Torvik 10.45, arrive Alesund 12.00

Depart Alesund 15.00, arrive Molde 18.00

Depart Molde 18.30, arrive Kristainsund 22.15

Depart Kristiansund 23.00

Weather at 11.00am, clear skies with scattered clouds, light wind, temperature +3C

The beds in the cabin proved to be comfortable and very snug. Although we had one stop in the early hours, we didn't really notice it and the seas for the overnight passage were slight. For our short stop in Maloy it was still dark but once we had got up and showered there was light in the eastern sky. By the time we arrived in the restaurant for breakfast it was after 8am and the sun's rays were beginning to strike the majestic snow covered mountains which line the coast.

As we continued northward, each change of course provided a stunning new vista. The colourful isolated settlements which dot the coastline and innumerable inlets look so pretty...the red and yellow houses contrasting with the pristine white of the snow.

The first stop where we could really see what was going on was Torvik. The ship docked at the small quayside, ramps were lowered, a couple of pallets of something were loaded, one or two passengers braved the extremely slippery dockside so as to get their feet on dry land (although I wouldn't count treacherous ice as dry land!) whilst the majority of guests were content to take photographs from one of the many vantage points on the ship.

Business concluded, we let go our lines and an hour and a half later were pulling in to Alsund. Alesund is an interesting town because after it was raised to the ground in the early part of the 20th century, it was rebuilt in an Art Deco style. We had lots of time to explore ashore, viewing the buildings and architecture, enjoying the stunning views and walking through the snow. We also took in a little of the local culture, spotting one of the fishermen selling fresh prawns off the back of his trawler and admiring some of the traditional dresses and costumes of the area which were for sale in the larger shops. 

Molde was the next stop but unfortunately it clashed with our allocated dinner time so we could only view the dockside from the restaurant windows. However, we didn't really miss anything as it was well after sunset, it was freezing cold outside and the pavements looked like skating rinks.

The last port for the day was Kristainsund and we missed it altogether as we had retired for an early night after all the excitement of the day. Not to worry. One of the beauties of this trip is that the ports visited during darkness on the northern route are visited during daylight hours on the return southbound.